A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
1. Description
The present invention relates in general to a system and method for using a male catheter and in particular to a system and method for clean intermittent male catheterization by a user or health care provider.
2. Background of the Invention
It is estimated that urinary catheters are placed in millions of men each year in the United States alone, either due to some illness, infection or malfunction or as part of some medical procedure. Care must be taken to clean the catheter site to reduce the risk of nosocomial infection (i.e., an infection that arises due to a procedure for treating a disorder and unrelated to the disorder itself, also referred to as a xe2x80x9chospital infectionxe2x80x9d).
The most common nosocomial infections are related to or arise from indwelling urinary bladder catheters (i.e., catheters that remain in the urinary tract for a relatively long length of time). The risk of such catheter-related nosocomial infections can be reduced using strict aseptic techniques (i.e., using gloves, disinfectants, antibacterial soaps, etc.) when handling the catheter. Moreover, the risk of infection can further be reduced by only using a catheter intermittently rather leaving the catheter in place for any length of time. Intermittent use of the catheter in conjunction with clean techniques helps to reduce the risk of catheter-related nosocomial infections and is, moreover, a far more attractive alternative for bladder evacuation to most patients who are candidates for the procedure.
Using a urinary bladder catheter under aseptic conditions in a hospital is routine. However, current medical practice emphasizes getting the patient ambulatory (and out of the hospital) as soon as possible. Consequently, catheterizations or catheter insertions are performed at home by nonprofessionals. These nonprofessionals must be taught clean techniques. However, no known comprehensive devices, apparatus or methods exists for teaching clean techniques or for facilitating such home catheter use for men.
The present invention provides a method and system for intermittent catheterization by the patient himself, the patient""s caregiver, or a health care provider. The present invention contains apparatus for facilitating at least one catheterization and comprises: (I) at least one male catheter; (II) antibacterial soap; (III) lubricant; (IV) step-by step instructions; and (V) a container, where the above named items are positioned inside the container. It should be appreciated that the present invention may only be used on the order of a physician.
Preferred embodiments of the system contain sufficient apparatus for one month of catheter insertions (approximately 3 to 4 times a day), the antibacterial soap is in liquid form, the lubricant is in gel form, the step-by-step instructions are written in English and Spanish, although other languages (e.g., Polish, French and German for example) are contemplated. One preferred embodiment of the system includes a contents map identifying the contents and the positions of the contents, along with zipper bags, a fanny pack and a protective underpad.
In a more preferred embodiment of the system, the system contains apparatus for at least one month of catheterizations as provided previously and comprises: (I) 4 male intermittent catheters; (II) 35 disposable wipes; (III) 1 protective underpad; (IV) antibacterial liquid soap; (V) 1 tube of lubricant; (VI) step-by-step instructions; (VII) clinician step-by-step instructions or self-care documentation; and (VIII) a box, wherein the above-named items are positioned inside the box.
The method for intermittent male catheterization comprises evacuating the bladder using the apparatus of the present invention in accordance with the detailed step-by-step instructions provided in the system. In a preferred embodiment, the method which is discussed in further detail below generally includes: (I) preparing for intermittent male catheterization; (II) preparing the male catheter; (III) inserting the male catheter; (IV) draining the bladder; (V) recording and disposing of the drainage; and (VI) cleaning and storing the apparatus of the present invention.
The present invention further includes a patient education system for educating users in performing intermittent male catheterization. Specifically, the system includes a system and a set of black and white step-by-step instructions without illustrations (referred to herein as self-care documentation). An instructor (i.e., a doctor, nurse, clinician or other medical professional) uses the self-care documentation to educate the user in performing an intermittent male catheterization, preferably using the system of the present invention. The medical professional then keeps the self-care documentation documenting that the user was educated in performing the male catheterization.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a system and method for intermittent male catheterization.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide detailed instructions for intermittent male catheterization using the contents of a self-care system.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide self-care documentation to be used by a medical professional in instructing users in the use of the self-care system.
Yet an additional object of the present invention is to provide a patient education system for educating users in performing intermittent male catheterization using the system.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, components and processes.